A Palouse Horse

When I was growing up my family owned an Appaloosa horse. His name was Red because he had red hair with white spots on his behind. I thought he was a great horse and now that I live in an area that has a museum dedicated to the Appaloosa I thought I would visit. Over the weekend I decided to visit the Appaloosa Museum & Heritage Center in Moscow, ID. I never knew that the name of the Appaloosa originated in the very region I live in today, called the Palouse region. The Palouse region has many rolling hills in which wheat and legumes are grown. Non-Native American people called the Appaloosa horse “a Palouse horse” because the horse was mainly in the Palouse region and were bred by the Nez Perce Native American tribe. It was also called “a Paloosey horse” so eventually people combined the words and the name evolved to be Appaloosa. The spotted horse is found all over the world but it was the Native Americans of the Nez Perce tribe that bred them to be unique in this region of the world.

The museum is split into three sections. The west side of the museum is dedicated to the heritage aspect of the Palouse region, including displays of the Native American tribe of the Nez Perce and cowboy getup, like saddles and tools needed for travel. The east side is all about the Appaloosa competitions and history of the horse in the last 60 year or so. It also includes a kid’s corner. Lastly, the gift shop is in between both sides of the museum.

A museum guest book is available for visitor to sign and above the book is a donation box. Visiting the museum is free to the guests, but a sign encourages visitors to make a small donation if they enjoy the museum. In front of the gift shop, a wooden life-size carved and painted Appaloosa stands with a saddle on its back and a bridle on its head.

The museum offers a short 10 minute video available in a viewing area. From the video viewing area the wall curves around into the heritage part of the museum. On the wall hang painted art of the old west cowboys and Indians and, of course, the Appaloosa. The curved wall ends at a corner where the art became a mural of the Palouse rolling hills. Displays of tools for working on horses are laid out like an image from an old cowboy’s working shop. In the middle of the room stand many glass cases filled with items handmade from the Native Americans such as bags and dresses. Other cases have items that were used on horses before cars were around. For example, lead ropes, bridles, and horse blankets. According to one museum staff member the Native American headdress on display was recently added to the museum in the last year. The headdress is made with several eagle feathers and is at least 5 feet in length.

Many Americans learn about Chief Joseph in school. Well, if you didn’t know,Chief Joseph was a part of the Nez Perce tribe. The Nez Perce ran to fight General Howard’s cavalry through Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana. The trail they followed was long and brutal. In the museum is a trail map display and information about the battle and Chief Joseph’s famous words said during his surrender.

"Hear me, my chiefs! I am tired; my heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now stands, I will fight no more forever.”

Over on the east side of the museum a visitor could access recent history of the Appaloosa. There are exhibits of old horse journals from the early 1960’s and many photos of the Appaloosa’s various hide patterns of spots. The museum also focused on the horse club with a hall of fame for outstanding Appaloosas.

The fun part of the museum for children is the kid’s corner because it is the only region of the museum designed to be hands-on. All throughout the museum I wanted to touch things, like the old saddles. Finally, something you can play with! The kid’s corner has a coloring table and the seats are saddles. All different types of saddles, even a lady’s saddle which ladies would ride with both legs on one side of the horse. There’s different size horseshoes connected to a rope that’s tied down the ledge, real horse hair and directions how to braid, and ropes with directions on how to tie different knots that would be used on a horse. Kids can dress up in cowboy boots, a hat, and vest while riding around on a stick horse. Children’s books about horses were also available for kids to be read to or to read themselves. Very fun!

Behind the museum is a fenced in area with a couple of Appaloosa horses. There is also a picnic area with three different plaques with information about the Chief Joseph Trail.
Like any museum that has its own themed gift shop, visitors can take home Appaloosa memorabilia. They have play-sized Appaloosa horses, t-shirts, and shot glasses. Since part of the museum is dedicated to the Nez Perce tribe, handmade jewelry and beaded bags are available for purchase.

Not to forget about those who help to keep the museum going, there are two areas in the museum where donor names are displayed.

Overall, the museum displays interesting history and focuses on the uniqueness of the Appaloosa.